Lockable steering-wheel for motor-vehicles



J. LAWSON.

LOCKABLE STEERING WHEEL FOR MOTOR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED APR-12, I920.

Patented July H eons? newsolr, or MANITQ, riinntors,

EQQKABLE $TEERING-WHEEL FOE- 1IGTOR-VEEICLES Specification of LettersPatent.

. ip olication filed Aprilm, 1920. Serial lie. 3'? ,2 2-5.

To all whom "it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN Lawson, e citizenof the United States, residing at Manito, in the county of Mason andState of Illinois, have inventedc'ertein new and useful Imrovements inLockable Steering-lVheels for deter-Vehicles, of which the following isa specification, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings.

lhis invention relates to an improved steering wheel and a locktherefor, and an object is to provide a lockable steering wheel which ispivotell'y mounted upon a supporting her movable with the steering rod,which is in the steering column, in combination with meens for lockingthe wheel in lowered position, or in a raised operative position.

Another object is to provide owheel so pivotelly end ogleretivelysupported on the steering rod wit in the column as to permit the wheelto be tilted downwardly, in conjunction with meens for locking the Wheelto the column, which is in surrounding relation to the steering rodStill another object embodies a yoke or loop frerne which supports thesteering wheel rim pivotolly end operstively mounted on e supporting herat one end of the yoke or loop frame, the other end ot the loop or yokeframe 7 having means to he latched operetively to one end of the supporting her, whereby the wheel may be opersted, or locked in aninoperative position .to the column in o tilted position, and being"that the column is stationary, the steering wheel is prevented frombeing rotated for the purpose of steering the front wheels of a. motorvehicle.

A further-object contemplates the provision of improved means integrallyor deteche'oly carried by the steering column and when detachehlycarried by the column it is possible to apply the improved steeringwheel and lock therefor to any incite. of en tcmohile now in use. 1

Wmle the design and construction at ,present illnstroted and set forthis deemed,

prefereble, it is obvious that as sat-result of e, reduction of theinvention to c more practicol form, for commerciel purposes, theinx-yiention rney he snscepnhle to changes, end.

the right to these changes is claimed, provided they are comprehendedthe scope of what is claimed.

The invention comprises further features and combination of ports, willhe hereinafter set forth, shown in the drawings and claimed.

In the drawings:-

l igure 1 is a View in perspective of e portion of e steering column,and showing the improved steering wheel and lock thereffor as applied,showing the wheel in on open ative position,

Fi 2 is a sectional View throngh the steering wheel, showing the sometilted, and illustrating how the wheel is locked on inoperativeposition,

Fig. 3 is 9, cross sectional Vl'BW on line:

3-3 of Fig. 1, Fig. 4: is a detail View of e portion of steering columnshowing the 1'? o straddling one of the lngs'it' which is ill on thesteering column and showing e por tion oi the shackle of the pedloc asengaging through the parts 17 end the lug in order to lock the steeringwheel in tilted position,

i ig. 5 is sectional view on line B ngles to that of 3,

toil sectional view through lunin showing a modified nio nting the lugson the column 0 a hand 2?.

lie-fe mole especially to the ings, l o. conventional in o steeringcolumn, which in Fig. l. esrr plurality of redial lugs 2 apertures 3,and denotes which passes through tie Fired at '5 on the upper end of teesteering rod is 3, transverse bar 5 to one end of which as shown at 7,loop or yoke nine 8 is pivotally mounted. The opposite ends of this loopor yoke frame are provided with extensions 9 which are bolted orotherwise secured at 10 to the rim ll of the steering wheel. Fixed toand extending let-erell of the sides or the yoke or loop frame are rods12 which are bolted or otherwise festened at 13 to the rim of thesteering w It will he noted that iiiiG'ZiOlif; or loop the. steer ngalounted the is carried by .iclosed in the .iupportin bar e on l, and adownwhich is also pro- .ihe opposite frame are pro- 1 17, the. parallell1 has downwardly pro- 18. These lugs 18 i9 winch are in registration.sti es of oi? the contracted or yoke 'iranie have regis- 20, which aredesigned to aperture 1 when the steeroperative position. one oi the e"-if yoke or loop frame or in 21 which are bifurcated as orally mounted inthe bilugs 2i on the pins are of the dogs engage E2 and are designed pnrude ate the apertures 14 of one the sup artinn bar to hold the steerraised operative position. s of the do s have interposed or thecontracted yoke or loopi'ran1e,-exngs 2'6 which act to hold 's normallyengaging the .rom opposi e lies'of one end l hen the wheel is p as shownin Fig.1, the wheel '1y manipulated theoperin i'or steering the frontmoi vehicle. when ii is desired to. lock the eel, and prevent the samefro: .lated, the dogs may be extend- .ic tension oi the enpansible ;sn1o.wfthe noses from the aper- 'Wll"l may then be on i s nivot, whereby thespaces beo L site sides of one of the con- ,5 of the yoke or loop framemay one of the lugs 2 of the steerin, so that the aperture may regtheregistering apertures 12 of iwardly projectin lugs 18, after u l shzmkleol 2 editablepadlockQS the like be passed through said regapertures toprevent steering i to normal pone operating oi transverse view of the 15illustrated a de- -rrymg the apertured sn a gem-en; with the rods, rodextencolumn, in fact, this band surrounds the column and carries asocket 31 on one end there being screws passing through the memberhaving the socket and are threaded into the enlargement 32 of the otherend of the band, thereby tightly securing the band on the column.However, the band is capabio of being detached simply by removing thescrews, and permitting the steering wheel to be removed. It is to benoted that the stationary lugs may be used or the band which isdetachable including the lugs may be employed.

in this latter case it is obvious that the band is capable of fittingany make or construction of steering column so that a lockable steering"wheel of the p-resentcharacter may be applied to motor driven vehiclesof the various characters, even limousines and heavy touringaut01nobiles,or trucks, preferably the latter, thereby preventing thesteering Wheel from being removed or manipulated as the case may be.

It will-be noted that the steering wheel can be tilted and locked to thesteering column regardless of the position of the steering' wheelrelatively to the column. This is due to the fact that the lugs'EZ orthe lugs 30 extend from the steering column at dif l'ercnt radialpositions. in tilting and look.-

ing the wheel it is the aim to aline the parts 1? so as to straddle anyone of the lugs 2 or the lugs 30 in order to lock the wheel.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed as new and usefulis 1. The combination with a steering column including a steering rodinclosed therein, of a support fixed to the upper end of and intoengagement with one end of the support to hold the wheel in an operativeposition, the parallel sides of said extension of the frame havingdepending portions, and means carried by the column engaging betweensaid dependinp portions, and means connecting the depending portions tothe means carried by the column thereby locking the wheel in aninoperative position.

24in a device-as set forth, a steering column provided with lateralradial projections and including a steering rod inclosed in the column,a support on the upper end oi said rod, a steering wheel pivoted on oneend of said support and adapted to be supported in an operativeposition, or in an inoperative position, said steering wheel including aframe having at one end a contracted extension having parallel partsbetween which one end of said support engages, means .extendingthroughthe parallel parts of said extension and through one end of the sup- 10port for locking the wheel in a raised operative position, and meansadapted to pass through the parallel projections of one contracted endof the frame of the Wheel and through one of the projections on thecolumn for holding the Wheel in a downward tilted inoperative position.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

JOHN LAWSON.

